A Karmic Christmas
by nw
Summary: As tradition goes in the Tendo family, Kasumi is having a Christmas party. What goes around will be coming around this Christmas for the lovelorn adolescents of Nermia. Not a full-out romance but with chunks of R,A. Added epilogue
1. Default Chapter

**Author's Notes: **A little bit longer than my other stories... enjoy.

_Disclaimer: (which I have been forgetting recently... whoops...) Ranma 1/2 and all its characters are owned by the great Rumiko Takahashi!_

**A Karmic Christmas**

Kasumi's Christmas parties were beginning to be renowned for their entertaining festivities, good spirits and kindly hosting. She had not disappointed this year, providing once again a Dojo filled with multitudes of people and abounding Christmas cheer. The bright decorations hung from the Dojo to the Tendo Christmas Tree, mistletoe sprinkled occasionally in unsuspecting places. Genma was even persuaded by the gentle Kasumi to dress as a reindeer in his panda-state. (Who could refuse a request from such a benign woman?). Tendo had cheerily volunteered to match this costume with his own Santa one, kept from previous years of Christmas-scheming.

Much more than this, Kasumi could not do. The guests were left to themselves to sort out their tangled love lives and their romantic preoccupations.

The evening started in relative peace, which was exceptionally good for the violently-inclined guests. Nabiki had business to be sorted this Christmas, cleverly arranging it so that Ranma could have at least a smidge more serenity during the party – for once, perhaps. It was no simple task. She had convinced his three aspiring pursuers: Shampoo, Ukyo and Kodachi, that the only way their gifts were assured to reach him was through her. She had therefore taken them, with a "safekeeping" deposit; exchanging them for words promising he would receive them in-tact and with all the sentiment with which they were intended.

Unfortunately for the three girls, Nabiki held little respect for these words and apathetically left the presents in the Tendo kitchen (for later consideration). Kasumi, finding them without tags (each girl had rushed even the wrapping in a haste to arrive at the Christmas party first) benevolently handed them to three people at the party who seemed most forlorn. Ryoga, Mousse and Gosunkugi were each emitting dejected aura around them – and coincidently had no presents, either. Kasumi simply did what seemed natural and gave each one of the gifts she had found in the kitchen, claiming they were mysteriously left from "secret admirers". Each lightened noticeably, feeling truly grateful to the Christmas spirit.

Akane was uncharacteristically out of the foreground this year. She was dedicatedly hanging around the Dojo windows, attempting to peer up and snatch glances of the sky. Her hopes were set on a white Christmas, because so far, it had hardly snowed at all during the winter. She was also fixing her attention on the state of the weather to keep her attentions off something else, which was in truth, a lot more interesting, but equally more easy to worry over. Nevertheless, she found her eyes deflecting themselves from the window and scanning the crowd for – ah, there. A black pigtail attached to a bored-looking Ranma. He was seated next to Mousse, who appeared to be gushing enthusiastically and motioning to a package in his hand; which was strange to say the least. Ah! She was observing him again! She mentally berated herself and walked over to the next window. The window bore on top of it a piece of mistletoe, and she angrily tromped her way over to the next window after that, trying to push away a fresh memory causing her poignancy…

_They had promised to help Kasumi decorate the Dojo this year. It was already half done, unfinished because Kasumi had focused her attentions on the kitchen. The Tendo house was deserted this early morning, with each assigned tasks to complete for the upcoming Christmas party. So they decorated, enjoying the rare silence._

_Ranma was entering the Dojo with a box of decorations, as Akane was leaving to gather one. They crossed paths, bumped into each other and sent the box flying. They stumbled against each other, drawing breath. They half-stepped back but seemed to paralyse, two pairs of eyes noticing the innocent-appearing strand of mistletoe dangling above them. Ranma flustered and looked, lighting quick, between the mistletoe and Akane's eyes. She was looking at him, and unless his imagination was deceiving him; she was inching closer. Abruptly, he stepped backwards, and choked voice stuttered the words, "I'm sorry, I-I can't…"_

_He disappeared up the stairs and Akane felt a crashing sensation in her heart and head impact simultaneously. After kicking the box of decorations Ranma had brought clear across the Dojo, she left, to jog the streets of Nermia in solitude._

Ranma was beginning to wonder what on earth could be so fascinating about windows. His apathetic-appearing exterior concealed what was on the inside a master of perception: alert, and never failing to notice Akane. He had tuned Mousse out countless minutes ago, who was still blabbering on about some sort of gift – he must have mistaken Ranma for someone else, someone with whom he was on good terms with. Noticing out of the corner of his eye what appeared to be three determined young women, oozing competitive chi and marching towards him. He hastily got off his chair and attempted to make himself lost in the throng of people; almost tripping on Gosunkugi, who was lying on the floor (looking a bit too stiff to be passed out naturally).

Hours wore on and darkness had recently fallen.

Akane, still being clouded by insecurity over her romantic issues, was now prevented from observing the sky from the windows due to nightfall. She was seen by only few guests ambiguously stepping her way out of the Dojo, taking to the streets for the second time that day. Walking, on this crisp, cool evening, would be more eventful than lingering around the festive Dojo. Everyone's smiles there only seemed to hide their fierce competitive spirits. Someone could hand you a gift with one hand while aiming the other to stab your back. She felt somewhat irritated that Kasumi's goodness was being given to such smiling devils, who only seemed to taint it. But perhaps she was just frustrated. That is, another year, and everything still seemed the same. Every step brought more memories of the year gone past, pleasant or not so much; but nothing out of the 'ordinary'. By her glances of Ranma, he didn't seem set to change any of it.

However, Ranma is often underestimated. He cursed the irony in the fact that he had lost Akane during his attempt to make himself lost in the crowd. He did have big changes in mind, but was buying time in efforts to dull down his nerves. It didn't appear to be working. He zealously pondered where Akane could be, checking all the windows. Nabiki passed him and gave him an odd look which said, 'you're a stranger guy than I thought'. His investigation, so to speak, was interrupted by Kasumi, who enlisted his help in clearing the Dojo – a dance floor had apparently been eagerly requested. He looked over her shoulder with a glance, to spy the sight of Shampoo, Kodachi and Ukyo enthusiastically setting up some space. Their eyes twinkled with schemes and fantasies of dancing with Ranma, romantically of course.

Before he could reply, Mousse, who was nearby and evidently overheard, happily interjected, "Don't concern yourself Ranma! – Kasumi, as a grateful guest here, I will help you!"

He picked up a nearby chair and Ranma noticed the vividly red gloves he had on. They looked new. No wonder he was so enthusiastic.

"Thanks, Mousse," muttered Ranma, and with a smile and a nod to Kasumi, he slipped into the Tendo house to look for Akane.

The dancing was started by a bumbling Dr Tofu asking a surprised Kasumi, who's only reply was an, "Oh my," coupled with a nod and a genuine smile. The lights were turned off, leaving only large lanterns in the four corners of the Dojo, crowds of guests sticking to the walls and slowly ebbing their way to join the dance floor. Kodachi was now preoccupied with kicking her brother, Kuno, who had drank too much and was loudly questioning the whereabouts of the Pigtailed Girl and Akane Tendo. Shampoo and Ukyo's minds were snapping into motion upon hearing him; Akane had been strangely missing, and Ranma… They momentarily panicked, and exited the Dojo to do a thorough search of the house. Nabiki approached Kodachi, with the proposition of keeping a careful watch over Kuno for a small fee. It was eagerly accepted, and Kuno joined Gosunkugi in the 'drunk or drugged' pile in the kitchen.

At the same moment that Shampoo, Ukyo and Kodachi exited through the front, Ranma came in through the back like a shadow and took a seat. He had not found Akane. The dance floor was very festive, though – everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves, and even his own father and mother were dancing in a rare display of public affection. No Akane here either though. It was also rather cramped; Kasumi's parties were so popular. He sighed, irritated at seeming to be the only one not bathing in Christmas-induced happiness.

Little did he know. Akane was still lightly padding her way through the landscapes of Nermia, through all the streets she knows and the rare few she didn't, through the park and under the bridge, along the canal to the school, around the corner and back again. Her mind abstractly wandered and her feet did not seem inclined to go back to the party. Eyes focused on the sky, which did not give any hints about its inclination to snow, and mind focused on Ranma, who coincidently did not give any hints about his inclination towards her. Surely she had been walking too long if she could draw analogies between weather patterns and romantic tendencies… her head shook. Reluctantly, she turned into the street which would lead to the school, along the canal to the park and around the corner which crossed to the path home.

Ranma had stepped outside into the slight breeze and moonlit night to find a solitary Ryoga sitting cross-legged with his back against the Dojo. He looked unusually serene.

"Hey Ryoga, what's up?" Ranma greeted him as nicely as he could muster – holiday season and all.

"Ranma…" the other boy trailed, "Not even you could ruin this day for me."

"Always with the melodramas, you are. What's so great about today?" Ranma walked to stand near him and leant against the Dojo.

Ryoga motioned to his stomach, and patted it humbly.

Ranma stared dumbfounded, "What are you talking about, you idiot?"

That provoked a glare from Ryoga, who then went on to elaborate, "Food. It was a gift. My first ever Christmas gift. I've eaten it now, but… Ah, how joyous a day it is! To be given a delicious meal in a container, wrapped up and delivered secretly! Akane, thank you…"

Ranma involuntarily twitched and felt the risings of jealousy, but it was pushed back by a short laugh, "What makes you think it was Akane? Didn't you just say the food was good?"

"It's okay to be jealous Ranma. The food was the best I've ever tasted, and the package was given to me by Akane's sister declaring it was from a 'secret admirer'. I think I know what's going on."

Ranma was puzzled, and pressed on, "So has Akane been over to see if you_ liked_ her present?"

Ryoga faltered, and after a slight silence, replied, "Well, not exactly. I actually haven't seen her tonight."

As one last precaution, Ranma wrapped up his security with, "And tell me, Ryoga… what kind of food was it?"

"Okanomiyaki".

"I see".

Ranma had seen enough misplaced gift-ideas during the night to assume some kind of mix up had taken place. Gosunkugi, the last he had seen him, was lying face down in the kitchen – apparently removed by some good-wisher assuming he had passed out. Mousse's bright red gloves were hard not to notice. Now this…

"Merry Christmas Ryoga," Ranma thought he deserved it, with a heart so bruised worn so noticeably on his sleeve. "There's some dancing inside, and quite a few girls without partners. You should go in. Maybe your secret admirer will be there."

Then he winked at him, and took off at a jogging pace down the road, leaving Ryoga to blink in stunned shock, before eventually standing up and walking into the Dojo.

Akane's head was down, enough to be watching her feet beat against the grass of the park (which was sadly not coated with snow). It was an attempt to balance out the amount of time she'd spent with her head up towards the sky. Her ears vaguely noticed the sound of footsteps somewhere ahead of her, but they did not register. She was justifiably taken aback when a distinct, "Hey!" rang in her ears, and she was greeted by the vision of Ranma staring at her intensely, appearing discomposed and hardly as confident as usual.

She jumped backwards at this unexpected sight. "R-Ranma, what're you doing-"

But he wasn't listening - his mind raced. He knew if he didn't do it immediately in the spur of the moment, he wouldn't be able to, so he cut her off to abruptly say, "I'm sorry about before".

Akane gave him a quizzical look with mouth agape, but he quickly continued.

"I didn't want to depend on a mistletoe to do this".

Before she could ponder his meaning, he stepped closer; brushing the hair from her forehead and running his thumb down her cheek. Then he leaned down and lightly touched her lips with his own.

Her eyes closed, but she was still getting over the original shock of seeing Ranma. This was a whole new level! Yet she felt the burden that was at the back of her mind all night lift more with every second he kissed her. The shock snapped out of her spontaneously, and she kissed him back gently.

When they parted, both looked breathless and tinged with a blush. They unconsciously moved back a little. Ranma grinned sheepishly at her and asked, "Where've you been? I've been looking for you all night…"

Akane blinked at this unexpected follow-up. It seemed so trivial in contrast to what they'd just experienced… yet she exhaled an inner sigh of relief. Her paranoid worries of Ranma having an orgy-like good time at the party with his many admirers were, obviously, not at all accurate. She half-smiled at him, head tilted down with shyness and meekly replied, "I went for a walk…"

Then came a slightly awkward silence in which neither was sure of what to say next. They both had hundreds of thoughts to express to the other, but the paradox came when they all became tangled and blocked up altogether, leaving no words at all to hang in the night air.

Akane could tell that there was something else important on Ranma's mind. He was looking at his feet and fidgeting, passing his weight between each foot. Her heart raced as she intuitively leaned her head to interrupt his line of vision (and the staring contest with his shoes). She caught his eye and did not dare to think about what she was going to say next, having sufficiently over-thought it for the past few hours.

He breathed deeply, though so did she.

"I love you".

"I love you".

Ranma was the first to react, stupidly replying, "Do you really?"

Akane felt happiness bubble up inside of her, the most joyous feeling – she felt light, and laughed at Ranma's question, smiling and replying sarcastically, "No, I was just kidding."

At the look on his face, she squatted him on the arm and said, blushing, "Of course, I love you Ranma".

He beamed at her, seeming instantly exuberant and energetic. She hugged him tightly, and he hugged back, mumbling into her ear, "I've kinda been meaning to tell you for at least a year now."

She looked into his eyes with an expression that told him it was alright. They romantically slid into another kiss when Ranma's foot bumped into something on the ground and he pulled away, looking downwards. He spotted a small bag.

"What's that?" he questioned, nodding his head at the ground.

"Hm? Oh! I almost forgot!" Akane stepped backwards and picked it up, she had dropped it before in her shocked-state. It was the brightly decorated Christmas bag she'd been carrying around on her walk.

"This is just a little Christmas present…" said Akane quietly, handing Ranma the bag. "I'm sorry it's not much."

Ranma looked very pleased nonetheless. He opened the bag with careful enthusiasm, put his hand in it and pulled out what appeared to be black as night, sexy lingerie. His face faulted. Akane jumped out of her skin and practically screamed.

Ranma stared at the lingerie, then at Akane, open-mouthed in disbelief. Was she as much of a pervert as she'd always accused him of being? Something in her disposition told him otherwise: possibly the fact that she looked mortified with a smooth blend of bewilderment and panic.

"That's not it!" she insisted, tone unusually-high pitched.

After a few minutes, Ranma snapped out of his stupor and calmly put the lingerie back in the bag and put the bag on the floor, masterfully controlling himself from commenting other than, "I guess Happosai went for some Christmas-raiding and decided to give you a present."

Akane sighed and glared at some invisible entity in the distance, "No wonder he was in my room before. That perverted lecher."

There was a brief, still silence, before both of them randomly burst into laughter. Today's events seemed a bit much.

At the far edge of the park, Ranma saw over Akane's shoulder what looked like the faint silhouette of a person. And another. In fact, there seemed to be a few scattered people, walking at idle paces around.

Akane followed his line of vision and both agreed that it was late enough for the party to be abating in people. Without speaking, they also mentally agreed on some level that if they didn't leave the park soon, their newfound love would be in very serious, physical danger - in the form of lovelorn pursuers.

"Um, Akane," said Ranma in a quiet voice, pulling her behind some trees to hide from view. "Dya mind if we take a shortcut home?"

Akane looked questioningly at him, and answered with an edging of curiosity in her voice, "No… why would I?"

The only reply was the faint twinkle in Ranma's eye which was not missed by the perceptive Akane. He then proceeded to swiftly pull her closer, (at which she sharply intook a breath out of surprise) pick her up, and leap cat-like onto the branches of the tree directly above them.

Akane grabbed the material of Ranma's shirt, feeling a lot like being on some sort of adrenalin-theme park ride. Also because, now of all times, she could – like she never could before, previously having to keep as much distance (as was possible), due to mixed feelings.

The jump was well-timed on Ranma's behalf. From the safety of the branches they took notice of the few people languidly crossing through the park – the Gambling King, a sour Kodachi half-dragging a disorientated Kuno, a wandering Ryoga and other scattered, indistinguishable figures. None of which Ranma or Akane had a particular want of meeting, or, being caught in compromising positions by.

When it looked safe enough, Ranma tightened his hold around Akane and agilely leapt to the nearest roof with lighting-speed, landing with not so much as a soft padding. He crouched low to avoid being spotted, and leapt to the next rooftop, making his way towards the Tendo home. He focused on keeping his concentration in-tact, maintaining focus on aim and direction rather than letting his mind wander to the warm body of the girl he loved in him arms. The girl he loved. Finally, to be able to say something like that. It was all new to Ranma, but he thought he rather enjoyed it. At the consequence of such thoughts, he slightly stumbled upon landing. He mentally chastised himself and went back to focusing on the bland matters behind the technical side of rooftop-travel.

Did she just notice him stumble? When, in all the years of knowing him, had the skilful Ranma ever landed in a manner of less than perfection? Perhaps, thought Akane, going by the look on his face; he was sharing the same train of thought that she was. She could barely believe what happened tonight, it seemed quite surreal. He was so warm…

When they neared the Tendo home, they again made contact with solid ground, joining feet to the streets in the darkly-lit back-roads leading to their destination the unconventional way.

Ranma released Akane, softly putting her down and lingering his hands around her waist a tad longer than was necessary. She murmured her thanks. They began walking slowly, at an almost leisurely pace. Noticing his shyness (which was, quite frankly, rather adorable), Akane casually moved closer to Ranma and slid her hand into his. It seemed like the most natural thing in the world. Before long, Akane looked into the sky and was amazed at what she saw. It was beginning to snow. Ranma noticed it too, and exclaimed at the obvious, "Hey, it's snowing!"

Akane quietly snickered as if indulging herself in a private joke. She closed her eyes and shook her head, almost in utter disbelief.

"What's so funny?" he asked her, raising an eyebrow and squeezing her hand lightly.

"Oh… it just seems so lame," she replied, inclining her head to look at him, "All night I've been hoping for snow, and coincidentally, it does now."

Ranma ventured a theory, "Karma's finally coming round for us. I think it owes us a few favours."

Then, as an afterthought he added, "So _that's_ why you were hanging around the windows all night! At the Dojo!"

She sighed, "Yeah… you noticed?"

"I was beginning to think you were waiting for Kuno to meet you under the mistletoe."

Their close proximity enabled her to elbow him easily, "He would probably have handled it better than you did," she laughed, adding insult to injury.

He went red, slightly embarrassed at his previous cowardice, but coyly replied, "You're right, I think we should do a re-take…"

"Ranma!" exclaimed Akane, though she was secretly pleased with the suggestion in his tone, and turned her head away from him so he wouldn't see her dopey grin.

Meanwhile, back in the park…

Ryoga, back on pack and hand on stomach, walked through the park rather aimlessly. He figured there wasn't much point trying to give himself direction, as it wouldn't do him any good anyway. Ahead of him, he heard agitated female voices engaged in some kind of verbal battle. As he crossed the trees blocking the scene from view, he saw the battle was physical as wel; he quickly ducked a bonbon hit his way by a spatula ravelled in a ribbon. He noticed Kuno sitting up against the tree now damaged with weapons, and asked him casually over the noise, "What're they fighting about this time?"

Kuno didn't look up, and probably couldn't stand up even if he wanted to, but eventually replied, "I believe it is over some sort of item they acquired tonight…"

Ryoga observed the faint outlines of what looked like a piece of fabric weaving in and out each girls' possession as they belligerently fought, melting the falling snow with their battle auras. He sat down next to Kuno.

"500 yen says it gets destroyed by the end of the battle".

Mousse appeared out of the trees' shadows and sat down next to them, waving some yen in a gloved hand, "1000 says they fight for the pieces."

When Ranma and Akane had practically reached the Dojo, they reluctantly agreed that waltzing in hand-in-hand was the direct equivalent of pre-signing their marriage certificate. From behind the gates, where all seemed empty and quiet (it was bound to be early hours of morning by now), they shared a departing glance and then entered separately at timely intervals.

Ranma dove naturally in and out of shadows, walking past the koi pond into the hall and down to the Tendo kitchen, as Akane caught her breath then went around, waiting to enter the Dojo.

For the second time that night, Ranma almost tripped on a stationary Gosunkugi, who quite apparently had not yet recovered from Kodachi's inflicted paralysis. (Ranma felt a twinge of guilt, knowing it was meant for him; but quickly brushed this aside figuring that Gosunkugi would have been thrilled to have receive some sort of present, therefore he would have been frozen in high spirits – if anything.) He noticed Happosai – well, his face, the only part of his body discernable from within what looked like a large bundle of fabric, shining bluey-black. He resisted the temptation to give the decrepit pervert a good kick and continued winding his way through the house. All was dark and there seemed to be mess everywhere – in fact it was unusually messy – intuition told Ranma that this was something other than post-party clutter. The mess had an almost systematic and meticulous arrangement to it, as contradictory as that seems. Almost as if a person, or a few, had been looking for something. After raiding the fridge, Ranma found the rest of the house in a similar status, most of all his room and Akane's. Dumbfounded, he put two and two together, then seriously pondered the intellect of his three aspiring 'fiancés' if they believed he and Akane would be hiding either in the kitchen cupboards or between the wall and the wardrobe.

He found his father snoring in panda-state on the futon, in sounds only associated with motorbikes and high-powered lawn mowers. How charming: no wonder his mother had chosen to sleep in Kasumi's room for the time being. Ranma reached into his backpack, pushed his hand as far as it could go down, and pocketed the small present that safely remained there. He noticed that his pack seemed somehow less full, and to his astonishment one of his favourite shirts was missing. Shrugging though a bit unnerved, he supposed it was Shampoo or Kodachi's view of a consolation for a wasted night. The care in his steps as he exited the room and made his way downstairs was unnecessary – the house was quite asleep.

Akane entered through the Dojo. Her eyes took in a sight noticeably different from when she had left it last – the only source of light was emitted from four, dimly lit lanterns. Tables and chairs had been cluttered against the walls; it was evident that it was a make-shift dance floor. Decorations were still in place, some half-hanging off of the ceiling or now decorating the floor, along with various coloured pieces of wrapping paper. She turned her head to where a faint sound was drifting from, to find that the music system was still on and had been left on loop. It was quiet enough that it was no surprise Kasumi had forgotten it: even few guests would have insulated the sound from human ears. She was admiring the sight of snow falling against the window, feeling as if it were some divine personal favour from the heavens, when she sensed rather than heard a presence behind her. Turning around, she saw Ranma bow theatrically, engage her eyes with his own and ask quietly, "May I have this dance?".

She felt freshly-born, warm butterflies flutter around her stomach and throat as she smiled happily at him. She then took his outstretched hand and replied, in an equally formal tone of voice, "Certainly".

He smiled back, enclosing her hand and stepping closer. One hand went around her waist and her other hand found its way to his arm; they were teasingly close. The music buzzed in the background, audible only to their ears.

As Kuno's senses began returning to him, he distinctly noticed that he was leaning against something. That is, there was an object in between his back and the tree behind him. With a hand, he reached behind him and took the object from where it was wedged. The Gambling King, who had recently been attracted by the commotion and lured to stay by the betting, noticed the bag and exclaimed excitedly, "While we wait for their match to finish, care to wager on what's in the bag?"

The others turned their heads and examined the mysterious bag with narrowed eyes, dreaming of the yen they could make with an accurate guess. As another rouge spatula took the hat off of the Gambling King, they began their second round of bets.

Akane noticed that after Ranma's valiant suggestion and positioning, they seemed to be standing perfectly still. She moved even closer to him, lightly pressing onto his chest, put her lips near his ear and whispered, "You do know how to dance, don't you?"

Ranma hoped his mental sweat-drop did not manifest itself physically, or it would betray his confident reply, "Heh, of course I do!"

More stillness.

Akane dropped her head into the crook of his shoulder, holding back laughter. She lifted it up to say, "To be honest, neither do I."

She felt his sigh of relief as his body lost its tenseness.

"Then you won't mind if we use the Saotome Ultimate Dancing Technique,"

"What's that?"

"Make it up as you go along."

They self-consciously adjusted position so that both of Akane's hands were behind his neck and Ranma's arms were around her waist, and they just swayed in comfortable silence to the vague music. Ranma had a far-off look of happiness on his features and was tinted red on his cheeks, Akane had her eyes closed, distantly wondering if when she opened them it would all be a dream.

"Akane," whispered Ranma, "I have a Christmas present to give you."

They stopped swaying and parted. The subject of Christmas presents brought back recent memories of their earlier scenario, making Akane grimace, "I still haven't given you yours though… It was a shirt, you know? I thought you might've liked it, since you've been wearing practically the same clothes since you arrived here."

Ranma fondly appreciated the ongoing karmic circumstances which seemed to be skewed in their favour – lose a shirt, gain a better one. He then shrugged and grinned, "I'll beat it out of the old lecher in the morning, but I'll have to wash it before wearing it. I think he might have tried it on," he remarked with a disgusted look on his face. Then he sobered and continued seriously, "I didn't have much money this year, after paying Nabiki for some help tonight... but this is special. Here."

With those words, he took a small package the size of his hand's palm out of his pocket, gently wrapped in very thin, silver paper, and handed it to her.

She carefully undid the tape on one side, and it unravelled as she held a hand underneath it. A small but dazzling, diamond-blue feather floated with elegance and landed on her open palm. She blinked, taking in the fact that it seemed to be glowing; it looked magical.

"It's beautiful, Ranma…"

Ranma pocketed his hands, looking content, "I came across it on a training trip about a year or so ago. There was a wandering peddler in the woods who gave it to me in exchange in thanks for helping him out. He told me that it was simply called a Blue Feather and that it brought fortune and happiness between the two it was exchanged between. At first, I thought it was just a load of crap – you know the weird types you find up in the mountains… so I let it blow away in the wind. But after arriving at the foot of the mountain on my way back, I found it caught in my hair. There's something magical about it, for sure."

Akane's eyes glistened. It seemed like such a meaningful gift. She conveyed her thanks humbly.

"Um, and also…" trailed Ranma, "he said that… if given between, two people…" he mumbled the next part, "in love," and quickly went on, noticeably not good with words, "it would act like a protective force over their relationship, to shield it from damaging misfortunes."

Then hastily added, "Not like I believe in any of that stuff, or anything."

She was touched by this new information, but looked at him coyly and poked him in the ribs gently, "Oh, no? Not at all?"

He put his arms behind his head, closed his eyes and pointed his head at the ceiling, "Nah… just superstition."

"And if the feather were to.... blow away?" she expertly pretended to puff the feather off of her hand, while moving it into the other behind her back.

His eyes snapped open and he frantically moved his head from side to side. From the corner of his eye, he saw something falling to the ground, and in reflex he made a running dive to catch it before it hit the ground. He fell to the floor and in the palm of his hand was a piece of mistletoe, fallen from the doorframe.

After an array of ideas concerning the contents of the mystery-bag had been put-forth, coupled with wagers to match. It had in fact become the principal interest of the boys, who payed no attention as Shampoo triumphantly hugged a shirt some ten meters in front of them, hair messy and out of bonbons. They payed no attention as Ukyo made a lunge at her feet, dragged her down and clung onto the shirt with a steel-like vice-grip. They took no notice whatsoever while Kodachi emerged from a pile of fallen snow and joined in the tug-of-war, shrieking insanely. On the count of three, the bag was to be tipped upside down and the contents revealed. Suspension built as the girls continued to unnoticeably wage a war of brute strength in hopes of keeping Ranma's favourite shirt (with the possibility of luring him onto a date to get it back?). Slow-motion-like, the bag was tipped – lacy black lingerie fell to contrast against the fresh, white snow; slow-motion-like, the shirt's stitching tore at the armpits and ripped into three pieces. The boys would have done better to have paid attention to their original bets; all were left to sweat drop and gape at the lingerie as the girls began fighting for the ripped shirt-pieces. It was going to be a long morning.

Akane laughed and walked over to Ranma, who was on the floor, holding the feather in between her thumb and forefinger, "Panicking over this?"

Looking slightly disgruntled, he got to his feet in one swift movement.

Then, sincerely, she looked at him and said, "I'll keep it safe…", neatly tucking it in a pocket in her blouse.

Ranma smiled at her, then took another look at the mistletoe in his hand. If he was not mistaken, it was the same piece that had caused problems that very morning.

"Now," he said, with a mock look of seriousness, "There's one more very important thing that needs to be sorted out…"

Akane looked between him and the mistletoe, tingling with anticipation. She stepped towards him teasingly, took the mistletoe out of his hand, and pushed him lightly against the wall.

"You're right," she said, smiling at the shock on his face, "I never got my kiss this morning."

And she held the mistletoe above their head.

* * *

_: ) Please review! I'd love to hear what you thought, and what you want me to write next - either continue with "If I Walked Away", or something original - tell me in your reviews if you've got an opinion either way. _

_Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!_


	2. The Morning After: A short epilogue

**Notes**: Alright, just as a prewarning: this is mainly just a pointless little snippet, written as a mere afterthought. If I had any sense, I would have written it first and made it a mysterious and foreshadowing prelude, and have the main chapter be a "the next day…" type fic. But alas, I don't have that kind of thinking capacity! So here it is.

**An 'Epilogue': The Morning After**

A solitary fish jumped through the diaphanous water and back again in one smooth motion. The Koi pond was surrounded by vaguely shimmering white snow, with all the unreal fluffy appearance as to make it appearant that it had recently fallen. The sun was burning only dimly, distantly, and the air was languid and carefree. It was a perfect atmosphere to fit the circumstances of that day.

The calmness in the Tendo household was irregular and unusual. It could be traced back to the absence of the two occupants who most usually collided and caused commotion – Ranma and Akane. The clock ticked down until it was very near to midday, and they both still appeared to be asleep, having not emerged from their rooms. The other inhibitants were somewhat perplexed, as it was very rare for either of them to ever sleep in. They went about their regular activies, however – a normal day.

Kasumi was humming as she glided a hot iron over crumpled fabric, making it look like an easy task. Nabiki lied on the floor tummy-down, bored expression plastered to her face as her eyes skimmed through the magazine open in front of her. Soun Tendo and Genma Saotome, in his human form, sat opposite each other with a shogi board between them, heads down, each concocting their own strategy to cheat their victory. It was a peaceful day.

Kasumi asked the others if it was alright to order ramen for lunch, and they all agreed. She walked her way to the phone to call the Nekohanten, and after about five minutes emerged into the room with a very slight frown and a quiet, "How odd…"

Nabiki looked up, "What is it, sis?"

Kasumi then explained that Cologne had answered the phone at the Nekohanten. She regretfully informed Kasumi that it would not be taking orders today, being closed. When asked why, Cologne explained with a tone of part bemusement, part annoyance, that her only two workers were dozing in what seemed like comatose-slumbers, and she had been mercifull with them, (since it was recently Christmas), and was allowing them to remain sleeping for that day.

After this recount, everyone blinked in thoughtful silence.

"How odd…" repeated Kasumi.

"I'll try for Okanomiyaki then," said Nabiki as she stood and idly walked to the phone.

After a short absence, she too returned with a frown, explaining simply, "No answer at Ukyo's."

They all glanced at each other. Kasumi shrugged and announced that she would cook something instead, and pattered her way to the kitchen. The others went back to their respective activities.

Genma appeared to be losing the shogi game. All avenues of cheating attempted and failed, he crinkled his forehead, giving the impression of being deep in thought. Partly because he wanted to bring the attention from the shogi game, and partly because the whole issue was slightly ominous, he eventually broke the serene silence.

"Now that I recall…" he began with a grave and serious air, staring into the sky and folding his arms. The others looked up at him. "This morning as I was going for my daily exercise," he missed their sceptic looks, "I reached the park…" Ah, they figured. He had probably been scavenging for yen or food.

"And I remember seeing a rather peculiar figure hunched against a tree and half-emerged in snow. As I got closer, I noticed it was Ryoga, asleep against the tree."

Soun replied, "Rather peculiar that so many of the martial artists seem to be in a deep sleep. I wonder if there's anything significant behind it all."

Nabiki remained silent, though she was also thinking. She already had her suspicions concerning Ranma and Akane; it was highly uncharacteristic for them to sleep late. She had been happy enough to put on a façade for the rest of the family and let them have their fun for one morning, but now it was well past midday and she figured they had had quite enough time. Standing once more, she promptly went to her room and picked up her camera. Holding it in one hand, she went back down to where Soun and Genma sat, now emerged in reminiscing about every sleep-inducing Oni they'd ever run away from (their words, however, made it sound much more heroic and noble). Changing her mind, she made her way to the guest room where Ranma and his father slept every night. Bracing herself for the worst (thought she hoped Ranma and Akane would have the decency to engage in those activities in Akane's room, at least that had a door and a lock), she opened the door swiftly, camera poised just in case.

She gasped and gaped wide-eyed. Ranma was fast asleep. There was nothing out-of-the-ordinary except from the rather happy expression on his face, but that could be attributed to whatever dream he was living out at that moment. Nabiki slid the door closed and walked, this must mean that… (She opened the door to Akane's room) Yes, Akane was peacefully sleeping also. She was wrong in thinking that they were busy with certain other activities. How strange – they were actually quite innocently snoring the whole time. She closed the door to Akane's room quietly and returned the camera to her room, slightly disappointed. It would have been photographic gold if her suspicions had proved true. Now that she had no other preoccupations, she went back to her magazine and lay idly on the floor.

The pleasant smell wafted slowly in from the kitchen. A solitary fish broke water as it flipped in and out of the Koi pond once more. The post-Christmas serenity continued. Scattered around Nermia, mirrored adolescents remained blissfully in undisturbed slumber, each exhausted from the events of the previous day (and extending into early morning).

* * *

**More notes:** Incidentally, a huge shoutout to _Hououza_, _Celestartial Blossoms_, _Vaniah_ and_ panda-tiney_, for being kind enough to review the first chapter, I appreciate your comments!

So anyone else out there reading this, please spare a second to type a few bits about what you thought of this story. It makes a difference, really!

Alright, so a proper story coming soon. Happy Holidays everyone.


End file.
